Russell may have hoped to slip in unnoticed. He made a big mistake in walking right past Oakland Tribune Raiders reporter Jerry McDonald, who was there covering the fight for the Sunday Trib.

"About the only break in the steady roar of cheers for Ward came in the eighth round, when former Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell made his way to some floor seats," McDonald said in his prizefight write-up.

Show of hands -- who is surprised that the earliest JaMarcus could make it there was two-thirds of the way into the fight?

"Wearing sunglasses and a University of Alabama hat and jacket, Russell drew boos and catcalls," McDonald writes.

Jerry McDonald elaborates further on the incident on his Oakland Tribune Raiders blog. "The boos started growing as an usher helped Russell find his seats," McDonald recalls. "A Raiders fan wearing a crisp, new Rolando McClain jersey (No. 55), stood up and began taunting Russell, asking him for his money back on his season tickets."